Many years ago, a 4-year-old girl was visiting her grandmother’s flower shop. While the grandma was making flower arrangements for customers, the two talked about various things. And during their chat, the inquisitive little girl gave her grandmother her own personal definition of what a grandmother is.
Luckily, the girl’s grandmother wrote down her granddaughter’s words—and the little girl’s delightful description has traveled around the world many times since then. I couldn’t help smiling when I first read it, and to me, it’s proof that children often understand things that we adults easily forget.
Scroll down to read the 4-year-old little girl’s wonderful description of what a grandmother is:
“A grandmother is a lady who has no children of her own, so she likes other people’s little girls. A grandfather is a man grandmother. He goes for walks with the boys, and they talk about fishing and tractors and like that. Grandmas don’t have to do anything except be there. They’re old, so they shouldn’t play hard or run. It is enough if they drive us to the market where the pretend horse is and have lots of dimes ready. Or if they take us for walks, they should slow down past things like pretty leaves or caterpillars. They should never, ever say, ‘hurry up.’
Usually, they are fat, but not too fat to tie kids’ shoes. They wear glasses and funny underwear. They can take off their teeth and gums. They don’t have to be smart, only answer questions like ‘Why do dogs hate cats?’ and ‘How come God isn’t married?’ They don’t talk baby talk like visitors do, because it is hard to understand. When they read to us, they don’t skip or mind if it is the same story again.’
Everybody should try to have a grandmother, especially if you don’t have television, because grandmas are the only grown-ups who have got time.”
That last line hit me the hardest—that adults don’t have time for their children. Please share this story to inspire more parents to be like grandmothers and spend more time with their kids!
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